“Today, I’m one of the world’s leading anthropologists, an accomplished archaeologist, and an award-winning novelist. And, at 41, I’m only now becoming aware of the globetrotting rut I’ve been in my entire life. Looking back on everything I’ve seen and done, I can’t help but ask, ‘Is that all there is?’” more satire from The…
Microsoft Word requires at least 30% more keystrokes and 100% more mouse moves to accomplish certain editing tasks than would an optimal word processor. Forbes —Bad Design Can Be Costly Similar:Florida Woman Bites CamelIdentifying her as a “Florida woman,” as…AestheticsDr Jerz I think your microphone glitchedhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPqnXF7A…AcademiaCover your Backside with B-roll on Vimeo Video School on…
“We are the Gist Generation. We have acquired a taste for hit-and-run, cut-and-paste knowledge. We expect a home page or e-mail correspondence to give us the gist and only the gist—time is money and you’re a click away from an iconographic trash can, so get to the point.” Jeff Barbian Similar:Girl Moved To Tears By…
This computer game tries something new. “If a character tells you he’ll call you tomorrow, he’s not kidding. You’ll have to wait a day to get his information. Faxes may arrive without warning, and instant messages may pop up onscreen when you least expect them — maybe even while you’re at work.” Wired.com —“Majestic” Invades…
“Organized religion was a primary target of every one of the twentieth century’s regimes of terror. But as is evident in Nazi and Communist terrors alike, organized irreligion (to put it in Royal’s sharp formulation) has proved far more dangerous than organized religion ever was.” Alicia Mosier Similar:The Pope's Prayer for Countering "Fake News"Today is…
You might assume there could not be a worse time for a field calling itself “Internet studies.” You would be wrong. The Chronicle of Higher Education Similar:"This paper is going to read like smooth jazz." AcademiaFrisbee is a brand name, but how newsworthy is that?What would you do? Today I wrote 192 …AcademiaRhinoceros in Love (World…
“Lambert received the e-mail in December, a piece of scrap in the vast electronic junkyard that is the World Wide Web. Regrettably, she says now, she removed the letter’s forwarding markers and unintentionally put her name at the bottom, making it appear that she was the author.” Washington Post —Don’t forward that e-mail just yet!…
“[W]hat could be more scholarly than a nice, authoritative statistic, quoted from a professional journal in the student’s field?” The Chronicle of Higher Education —Telling the Truth About Damned Lies and Statistics Similar:What’s Up With That: Why It’s So Hard to Catch Your Own TyposA readable Wired article about why proof…CultureTSA Agent ConfessionIt was May…
The longer the company’s annual report, the less successful the company. This isn’t really a technical writing issue — usually companies with bad news to report need a lot of words to explaining themselves. But if this is what it takes to get some pinhead CEOs to appreciate brevity, so be it. Wired Similar:Intagrate Lite…
Danielle Preston —You Know You’re a Technical Writer When… Similar:Incredible archer shows his speed-shooting skillsI know next to nothing about archery. Ac…AestheticsUnemployment rates for recent college grads: Overall, 5.8%; Computer science, 6.1%; Comput…The market is rough for college grads, a…Business30 Web Designs Featuring Vintage Style Typography30 Web Designs Featuring Vintage Style T…AestheticsMy Student Calls Out…
A student of mine makes comments on interactive fiction, garish colors, and dancing text. Jan Carroll —Just For the Record Similar:Mount St. Mary's president fires two faculty members, one with tenureMount St. Mary’s fires two faculty membe…AcademiaFirst time experimenting with depth of field. The pilot's perch in a fancy #steampunk crui… AestheticsVideo games 'teach…
learns something from my freshman comp students. On March 13, 2000, I e-mailed web guru Jakob Nielsen to tell him that six of my freshmen spent 8-30 minutes on his site without finding a plain-text “search” link on the home page. A week or so later, I noticed that Nielsen changed his page, making the…
“[W]hen it comes to writing, whether you’re a seventh grader, a college student, a professor, a beginning copywriter, or an accomplished novelist, a B isn’t good enough.” Kathy Henning —For Writers, Writing Is Never a Waste of Time: Part 2 Similar:'Fontgate': Microsoft, Wikipedia and the scandal threatening the Pakistani PMI would call this “typefacegate,” but…
“[A] society without literature, or a society in which literature has been relegated–like some hidden vice–to the margins of social and personal life, and transformed into something like a sectarian cult, is a society condemned to become spiritually barbaric, and even to jeopardize its freedom.” Mario Vargas Llosa Similar:I went with frisse. German uses esse…
The creator of Cliffs Notes has died. Here’s his obituary — although I know you probably won’t bother to read the whole thing. Similar:People who caught Covid in first wave get ‘no immune boost’ from OmicronScience deniers who expect medical resea…CultureNASA reconnects with Voyager 1 (after months of confusion) NASA says it is once again…
On the tasteless side, but still very funny: “Some Features You May Need on Your Computer“ Similar:Go Forth and Conquer, but Postpone the Selfie“We have about 850 graduates, and we hav…AcademiaWordPress 3.8 “Parker”No time to play with this, but looking f…Cyberculture5 Characteristics of Successful Work Groups (at Google)Google’s internal study of work groups f…BusinessIn a…
“It is our duty, as responsible citizens, to stop the rot. Next time someone touches base with you or moves your goal posts, punch them in the face.” Clint Witchalls —Business and the English Language Similar:How much of what local TV stations post to Facebook is actually local? For many, right aro…I am not a…
“Europe once sought to bring enlightenment—literacy, civil society, modern technology—to benighted parts of the world. It did so in the name of progress and civilization. The ethic of Third Worldism dictates that yesterday’s enlightenment be rebaptized as today’s imperialistic oppression.” Roger Kimball Similar:Oedipus Tyrannos (Oedipus Rex) — Brief IntroductionMy first lecture screencasts for my newl…AcademiaThe…
Imagine yourself creating a game with a world for other people to inhabit on your own computer. It is a world without sounds or visuals. Now, put yourself into the textual world and imagine yourself in that world and living through the game. Laura L. Hogue —Text-based computer game lets players interact with story. Similar:Journalism…
The point is not that we should add stories to our sites to ensnare narrative-starved readers. The point is that the reader’s journey through our site is a narrative experience. Our job is to make the narrative satisfying. Mark Bernstein —The Narrative Web Similar:Google’s broken link to the webI guess now we know why for…